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He was truly happy, and I’d been able to do that for him. It made me feel amazing.
     
    “It’s about fucking time,” Adam added as he popped the top off his first beer and offered it up as a cheers. The rest of us followed suit.
     
    We spent the rest of the night talking and messing around, playing video games and just generally having fun. After they all left, I took Donny to his room and showed him just how much he meant to me.
     
    Twice. Yeah, it was about fucking time.

Chapter 5
     
    Tyler
     
    After I dropped Riley off, I went home and showered. I felt like a total scumbag and that was not a good feeling for me. While I was in the shower, all I could think about was every little thing I wanted to do to Riley, which made me feel even worse.
     
    Alex used to be the only person I fantasized about, which was a little disturbing considering the guy left me in the early morning hours and never looked back. I was almost positive that he wasn’t sitting at his place in Texas thinking about me.
     
    For the first time in a very long time, I let myself think about what Alex’s life might be like now. Was he dating someone? Did he have roommates or was he living alone? We’d started living together after about a year of dating so it was within the realm of possibility that he had a live-in boyfriend. Did he ever think about me? I wondered where he was working and what type of friends he had as I finished washing myself off.
     
    I dried off and got into my sleep pants before crawling into bed. I turned the light off and lay there, my mind running through the whole night again. Riley was right about one thing: I was single and I should be able to enjoy a night out without feeling all that guilt weighing down on me.
     
    I had to know what was going on with Alex. I figured one phone call wouldn’t hurt and I couldn’t stand it any longer. Two years without so much as one phone call was too much. I grabbed my phone off the nightstand and dialed his number from memory, hoping that he hadn’t changed it.
     
    Ring. Ring. Ring.
     
    “Hello?” someone answered and it wasn’t Alex’s voice but it was definitely male. My heart sped up in anticipation. Hopefully it was just someone else’s number.
     
    “Um, hi… is this still Alex Parker’s phone number?” I asked, my voice shaking more than I wanted it to.
     
    In the background I heard, “Hey, Donny, who is it?” and that was definitely Alex’s voice.
     
    “Yes, this is Alex’s phone. He’s kind of busy at the moment,” said the person, apparently named Donny. “Can I ask who’s calling?”
     
    My heart felt like it stopped beating for a few seconds and my eyes began to well up without my permission. “N-N-No, that’s okay… thanks anyway,” I stammered and hung up the phone.
     
    I swiped my hands angrily across my eyes, trying to wipe away the traitorous tears. Bastards.
    It was after midnight and another man was answering Alex’s phone. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that Alex wasn’t having a tea party with him. My heart hammered in my chest again and I felt as though I couldn’t breathe. Seriously, why was this coming as such a shock to me? Two years was a long time to go without sex; believe me, I knew all about it.
     
    I may have hoped for it, but I hadn’t really believed that Alex was going to stay celibate, so why in the hell was I waiting around? Because I’d made a promise to a man who walked out on me when I needed him to stay? Yeah, that’s so damn smart. I’d put my life on hold for over two years for him and it obviously meant nothing to him. And now there was a gorgeous man out there feeling rejected and hurt because of my stupid actions. Aiming for the genius of the year award here! Damn!
     
    I hopped out of bed, threw on a t-shirt and grabbed my keys as I ran out the door. I drove as fast as I could to Riley’s duplex and jumped out of the car like my seat was on fire. As soon as I got to the porch, I